Atlus parent to sell off holdings - report

Translated Japanese reports suggest Atlus parent company Index Corporation is moving to sell off its various subsidiaries.

The news comes via Bloomberg, partially translated by Mad Man's Cafe with help from auto-translate and my kanji dictionary.

The company is facing stock market delisting on July 28, and will begin taking bids on its holdings as early as next week.

The sales are expected to bring in ¥15 billion - about $149 million. Index Corp's decision to sell quickly is being viewed as a strategic move to protect the value of its subsidiaries; if Index Corp cannot finance their business operations, its holdings will begin to bleed employees and suffer disruptions to release schedules.

Index Corp's holdings include Japanese developer Atlus, which is responsible for Shin Megami Tensei, and the US publisher of the same name, in addition to animation studios and other business.

Index Corp has been showing signs of trouble for some time, and was recently investigated for financial mismanagement. It filed for chapter 11 in June.

Last month, Atlus USA said it was "unaffected" by Index Corp's difficulties; if sold off, both it and its Japanese compatriot may experience interruptions to development and publication schedules.

Thanks, Destructoid.